NORWICH – Due to Governor David A. Paterson’s proposed cuts in funding for the New York State Council of the Arts (NYSCA), arts organizations throughout the state – including the Chenango County Council of the Arts (CCCA), the Earlville Opera House and the Chenango River Theater, among others – are facing drastic changes and challenges in the near future, according to CCCA Executive Director Victoria Kappel.

The proposed 40 percent budget cut would reduce funding by $16.4 million statewide, from $41.6 million to $25.2 million, making it the largest state agency cut in a budget that is nearly two months past deadline, said Kappel, who added the cuts would have “a direct impact” on the CCCA’s Broome and Chenango Decentralization Grant Program (DEC), a loss of approximately $21,000 in direct assistance to arts organizations and municipalities in Broome and Chenango counties in the next grant cycle.

A $25.2 million NYSCA budget would be a throwback to funding levels in 1985, according to Kappel.

“This will certainly call into question the existence of arts organizations throughout the state,” stated Kappel, who reported the NYSCA has already sustained major cuts in the last two years. “For many of the smaller groups, we’re the sole source of funding, and for larger programs such as Colorscape and Bluesfest, we provide significant funding.” In Chenango County, DEC funding helps support programs such as the Smyrna Citizens Band, the New Berlin Art Forum, Wolf Mountain Nature Center and cultural programming at public libraries in Norwich, Oxford, Sherburne and Greene.